Mesozoic
by Starrynight3
Summary: Daniel takes vacation time to learn about dinosaurs and...
1. In the Field

TITLE: Mesozoic Part 1: In the Field AUTHOR: Starrynight DATE: 3/10/02 EMAIL: kitty1jw@hotmail.com CATEGORY: Series: Mesozoic; Drama; Challenge: Angst; Hurt/Comfort PAIRINGS: None SPOILERS:None 

SEASON/SEQUEL: Season 3 before Legacy; Part one of a continuing series RATING: PG CONTENT WARNINGS: Minor character death SUMMARY: Response to Challenge # 1026. Daniel takes vacation time to learn about dinosaurs. STATUS: Revised ARCHIVE: Heliopolis DISCLAIMER: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. I have written this story for entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without the permission of the author. AUTHOR'S NOTES:I have cleaned up this story since I submitted it to Heliopolis. 

Thanks to CalicoCat for reading this over again and giving me such good advice! 

Also, thanks to the folks at SG-1 badfic! 

******************** 

Daniel sat in the living room conversing with Doctors Tom and Linda Ramsey, who were paleontologists and good friends of his. They had invited him to spend his vacation with them and learn about dinosaurs. 

An Abyssinian cat jumped up onto Linda's lap. She started stroking the cat automatically as she continued talking. "You know, some of the dinosaurs were the most amazing creatures. We've been doing some in depth research on the Velociraptor bones and we discovered that they could do incredible things." 

"Such as . . . ?" Daniel asked giving her his undivided attention. 

"Well, we showed some of their abilities in the display we had set up a couple of years ago,'T-Rex on Trial'. For one thing, it seems that they were capable of manipulating things with their hands. They could have opened doors, if they had existed in the Mesozoic." 

"That's pretty impressive. I don't imagine that most dinosaurs could do that," Daniel surmised. 

"No, they couldn't. The Velociraptor was one of the smartest and most agile dinosaurs that ever lived. Also, they worked in pairs or packs. They really knew how to cooperate with each other. They had really nasty three-inch claws on their feet and could slice right through their prey with no trouble at all," Tom commented. 

" In other words, they would make a very deadly opponent." 

" Yes. We have the video tape at the lab. We'll show it to you first thing tomorrow morning." 

Linda said, "The more we study them, the more we are learning about just what kind of survivors they really were." 

"You know, I am really fascinated by all the dinosaurs," Daniel remarked. "There was such a wide variety of them and they all lived over such a long period of time. Human history is so short next to that. It would be even better to be back in that time . . . to see how they actually lived." 

"Yeah, I agree, but boy you better watch out! I wouldn't want to get in the way of some of these animals. They could kill one of us in no time!" Tom warned. 

Linda nodded in agreement. "We're always looking for more pieces of the puzzle. We have actually found a number of different dinosaurs right here in Montana, both plant eaters and meat eaters. We've even found Troodon eggs with the embryos intact." 

"Did you x-ray or CAT scan them to determine that?" 

"We CAT scanned them," Tom stated. "That's on display at the museum." 

"I definitely want to see that." 

"You'll have plenty of opportunity to see that and many more things," Linda remarked. 

"That's great, but what would be even better is to be with you when you make some remarkable new discovery." 

"Well, Danny, you just might have the chance," Tom said with a glint in his eye. "We wanted to take you on a couple digs, too." 

"Fantastic! I'm looking forward to that!" Daniel smiled, anticipating the chance to see some dinosaur history. 

They paused for a short time, just sitting silently. Then Daniel spoke up. 

"That's quite a cat you have there." 

"Oh, this is Cleo. She's my lap cat." She smiled down at the slender cat. 

"Cleo, short for Cleopatra? . . . Did you name her that because she's Abyssinian?" 

"Yeah, she had the look . . . a kind of regal bearing. Cleo? Want to play?" She tossed a toy attached to a string into the middle of the floor. The cat sprung off her lap and pounced on it. She continued to play with the cat while Daniel watched. I've got a Bombay, too. His name's Hannibal. He's off hiding right now. He's shy around strangers." 

"Oh . . . yeah . . . Hey, do you remember the time when . . . " Daniel went on to relate an experience they had all shared a few years before. They talked for a while and then went to bed. 

******************** 

Linda, Tom and Daniel all sat in Linda's office the next morning, watching the video of the Velociraptor's arm motions. "That's amazing!" Daniel commented. 

"These were probably some of the most adept dinosaurs that ever lived," Tom responded. 

Linda started rewinding the tape. "I have the taxonomic classifications. We can look at some of the groupings of dinosaurs if you're interested." 

"Sounds good." Daniel had decided that he was going to make the most of this learning experience. 

"Why don't we go get a cup of coffee and then we can start?' Linda turned around, flipped her long brown braid over her back and started heading out of the office lab. Tom and Daniel followed her. 

******************** 

Daniel stared puzzled at the long branching table displayed on the computer screen. 

"What's the matter, Danny? You've never seen a taxonomic table before?" Linda teased. 

Daniel got a humorous glint in his eye. "Taxonomy is not exactly part of my job description. Language family tables kinda look like that, though." 

"Looks pretty confusing, huh?" 

"Well . . . it's one of the more complicated ones I've seen . . . " 

"It's not as bad as it looks once you get the hang of it. I remember when I first looked at classification tables. Some of them really threw me for a loop. You can usually find what you want if you look carefully. Let's look up Velociraptor since we've already been talking about it. Going back to the table, we can look for 'Velociraptor'. We have to go through the branches step by step which means we have to know what type of animal we're looking for." She demonstrated, going through the table, narrowing down the groups, until she finally reached 'Velociraptor'. 

"Hey, honey, I'm going to go do some more work on those hadrosaur bones while you work with Danny," Tom said. "Just don't let her overload you, Danny, or you might end up as a fossil!" 

"I'll try not to, but I can't guarantee anything!" 

"Thanks, Tom!" Linda grumbled good-naturedly. "See ya later . . . much later . . . after I fossilize both of you!" 

Tom stood and walked into a different section of the lab. 

Linda and Daniel turned their attention to the computer again. Daniel watched carefully, taking everything in. 

"This is the part where we have to be careful. We go down to the point where it says 'Time'. We can find the approximate time that they existed. This will help us determine what other dinosaurs coexisted with them." 

"So, then you could get a picture of the entire community that existed at a given time." 

"Yes! You're catching on fast, Danny. Before long you'll be able to add paleontology to that list of letters that you already have behind your name." 

Daniel modestly nodded his thanks. 

"You notice that we have to go into the description of each dinosaur to find the time that it lived. Not all the animals in a particular group lived at the same time, so were going to have to sort out the ones that lived at the same time as Velociraptor." 

Linda moved down to the 'Time' section and read what it said. "'Campanian'. Okay, now we can look at the larger time table and see where they fit in the bigger picture. She selected the larger table and looked for the name 'Campanian' Here it is. It shows that Velociraptor lived in the very late Cretaceous. So we need to look for the various dinosaurs that also lived in the end of the Cretaceous." She paused momentarily. "I'm going to download this table into a laptop computer to take with us when we go to the digs, but I thought that you might like to get some practice using it. Why don't we look at some other dinosaurs and see what we come up with?" 

"Okay, I'll try the next one," Daniel said. Linda relinquished the computer to Daniel and stood beside him. 

"Let's try for Tyrannosaurus Rex. You've probably heard a lot about it, but we're making new discoveries all the time about it, too. It lived in the late Cretaceous at about the same time. Here in Montana we've been mainly dealing with Cretaceous formations. Linda carefully led Daniel through each step of the table until they found 'Tyrannosaurus Rex' They looked at the statistics on the dinosaur. 

"Wow, that's quite a dinosaur! It's interesting to see that there were other species of Tyrannosaurus besides T-Rex. That's the only one anyone ever seems to hear about. Well, I think, I'm getting the hang of this now," Daniel said. "May I try another one?" 

"Sure. This time let's look up the hadrosaur Edmontosaurus. We just recently discovered another one up north." 

They continued with this task for the next several hours taking a break every now and then. Finally seven o'clock rolled around. 

"Well, guys, ya ready to head home?" Tom asked as he stepped into the room. 

"Seven o'clock already, huh?" Linda asked. "Time sure flies! Okay, I guess we'll pack it up for tonight." 

"Brain overloaded yet, Danny?" Tom joked. 

"Well, I probably could use a break, but at least I'm not a fossil." Daniel smiled. 

"Linda would probably go on forever if you let her." 

"Okay, guys, that's enough!" Linda jested. "You must know by now that I'm madly in love with my work!" 

Daniel couldn't help but laugh at that. 

"Yeah, to the exclusion of all else," Tom teased. 

Linda started to give him a nasty look, but laughed instead. 

"If you think she's relentless now, just wait till you see her on a dig. You practically have to pry her off the rocks. She sticks to them like a barnacle." 

"That sounds like someone I know," Daniel said knowing how driven he became with his work at times. 

********************** 

The next morning the three were talking over breakfast. 

"You know, I've seen the assembled dinosaur skeletons in other museums, but I'd like to see more of what goes on behind the scenes," Daniel said. 

"Well, we were going to show the labs today, so you'll get to see all of that," Linda replied. 

"In archaeology we have to piece some things back together again, before we can study them. I figure you probably have to the same with bone fragments and pieces." 

"Yes, we do and some of those bones are pretty fragmented when we find them." Tom stated. "Sometimes we can't always remove them successfully, so we have to use casts of bones from other animals to complete the skeletons. One of the most complete skeletons was "Big Al" a sub-adult Allosaurus found near Shell, Wyoming. He was 95% complete. We only had to add a portion of the tail." 

"Wow! That's a nice find! Most of the skeletons are more incomplete, aren't they?" 

"Yes, sometimes we find very few bones or if we find more they may be too decomposed to remove from the site." 

"You're gonna have a good time in there, today, Danny," Linda said and smiled. 

He looked at her in eager anticipation. "Thanks. I'm sure I will." 

********************* 

Linda could see the way Daniel's eyes brightened as they went through the labs looking at all the bones in various states of reconstruction. Yep, that's the Danny I remember, always wanting to learn something new. 

"This is that Triceratops pelvis they talked about in 'The Making of Walking with Dinosaurs'. Here you can see the marks made by the teeth of the T-Rex. " Linda pointed to some deep holes in the bone. Then she picked up a tooth and said "Put it into one of the holes." She passed the tooth to Daniel who matched it with the hole and then smiled and remarked, "It fits perfectly." 

"This is one of the ways we can determine what predator preyed on triceratops." 

"It's like you said . . . just like a puzzle." 

"Yeah, that's true and we're just really beginning to see the big picture. I've always been curious how those big predators really lived." 

"Hey, Linda?" Tom rushed into the lab. He was out of breath after running upstairs from the basement labs. 

Linda and Daniel both jumped and looked up from the triceratops pelvis. "What, Tom?" Linda asked. 

"Great news . . . " He ran his hand through his dark brown hair as he paused to catch his breath. His dark brown eyes glowed with excitement. "We' ve got the word. We're gonna go dig out Terry, my favorite T-Rex skeleton!" 

"Wow! That's fantastic!" Linda's aquamarine eyes lit up, too. 

"They want us to go up there as soon as possible. Well, Danny, here's your chance! You know what they say, 'Many hands make light work.'" Tom stated. 

"Yeah, that's true," Daniel agreed, smiling. "I'm happy to help." 

"Well, I better go get the gear together," Tom said as he made for the door. 

"Do you need some help?" Daniel asked, standing up, looking up at the taller man. 

"Sure." Both men left together, leaving Linda to put the bones back and make further preparations. 

********************** 

The next morning, three were walking across a flat area of a badlands formation when Tom started looking for the marker he and the hikers who made the discovery had left the previous fall. "According to the map we should find it right around here," Tom said. They walked a little further. 

"I see something," Linda said, pointing off to one side. 

"Yeah, that's it." 

The group headed toward the stake jutting out of the ground. 

"Well, Terry, we're here," Tom said as he examined the area carefully. 

Daniel pointed to something that appeared different from the silty soil around it. "Is that a bone?" 

"Possibly," Linda replied. She took off her pack, opened it up and pulled out a couple of brushes. Daniel took his pack off, too. Linda started brushing the area carefully, revealing more of the bone. "Yeah, it sure is. Do you want to work on this, Danny? You saw how I was cleaning around it." 

"Yeah." Daniel knelt down and accepted the brush from Linda. He started carefully removing the powdery clay from around the bone using the same skills he did in archaeological digs. Linda stood and watched. 

Tom walked a short distance out to the edge and took in the view, admiring the formations and the colors. He looked over his shoulder and called out to the others, "Hey guys, this is a fantastic . . . " Then he cried out sharply and disappeared. 

Linda looked over to where Tom had just been standing. "Tom!" 

She and Daniel both rose quickly and rushed over to the edge. A little debris still slid in the deeply eroded, nearly vertical channel. They could see Tom lying on the flat surface at the base of the formation. A large flat rock lay nearby. They stared in shock. 

"TOM!!!" Daniel shouted, his voice raw with anguish. 

"Tom!! Oh my God!!" Linda cried out. She started to panic. 

Daniel saw the look on her face and realized she was in no condition to go anywhere. 

"I'm going down there!" Daniel said quickly. 

"Danny!" 

"Linda, I've got to help him!" 

"Okay . . . " 

"Stay put. I'll see how he's doing and let you know." Daniel tried to remain calm, which was nearly impossible considering that his heart was pounding. He retrieved his pack, knowing he would need the first aid kit and water in it. 

Daniel walked along the edge cautiously, controlling his fear of heights, until he found a safe place to start down the side. Then he carefully made his way down and quickly ran over to Tom. The situation looked bad. Tom's head rested at an odd angle. "Oh God! His neck may be broken!" Daniel murmured. He checked Tom's pulse. "Good, he's still alive. 

"Linda!! He's still alive!! We need search and rescue!! He may have broken his neck and I can't move him!!" 

"There's a cell phone down in the Suburban!!. I'll have to run down there and call them!!" 

Daniel shook his head, very worried. "GO!!! GO NOW!!! I don't know how much longer he's going last!! HURRY!!!" 

"I'm going!!" She grabbed her pack and took off running as fast as her legs would carry her. 

Daniel started feeling Tom's body for broken bones. He frowned when felt the rib cage. Tom had broken at least five ribs. Daniel felt along the legs and found that the left femur might also be broken. Blood seeped through Tom's left sleeve. He felt carefully along the left arm and touched something that was protruding. Then he reached into his day pack and pulled out a first aid kit. He removed the scissors and started cutting Tom's long sleeve and pulled it back gently. Daniel grimaced. A portion of the humerus was poking through the skin, He carefully disinfected the area around the bone and dressed it the best he could. Then he just sat by Tom, wrapping his arms around his legs and resting his chin on his knees. He stared bleakly into space. It was up to Tom now. 

Daniel glanced at his watch. An hour and a half had gone by. He looked around anxiously. 

Tom stirred and groaned. Daniel shifted and leaned over him. 

"Take it easy, Tom. Please don't move. You've got a broken arm, a broken leg and several broken ribs." 

"Water?" 

Daniel nodded, reached into his pack and pulled out a squeeze bottle. He opened it and gently squeezed a little of the water into Tom's mouth. Tom coughed a little. 

"Sorry!" 

"Okay . . . Danny . . . Rock . . . went out . . . from . . . under me." 

"Yeah. You fell down the channel." 

"Not . . . as solid . . . as I thought." 

"No, it wasn't." 

"Not . . . what . . . I had . . . in mind." 

Daniel looked at him sympathetically. 

"Guess . . . Terry . . . will . . . have to . . . wait . . . ." 

"The students and assistants can probably start the work for you. When you're feeling better, you can come back." 

"Don't . . . know if . . . I'm . . . going . . . to . . . get . . . better." Tom was really struggling to speak. Daniel did not like the sudden Tom's sudden change of tone. 

"Tom, please don't say that," Daniel pleaded. "We're doing everything we can to help you." 

"Danny . . . Please . . . tell Linda . . . I love her." Daniel looked at Tom sorrowfully. 

"Come on, Tom. You've got to hang on . . . for Linda's sake." 

"I'm sorry . . . ." Tom went limp. 

"No . . . no . . . " Daniel anxiously felt Tom's pulse. It was weaker than before. 

After a few more minutes and at least ten more checks of Tom's pulse, Daniel heard a noise. He could just make out a helicopter in the distance. "Thank God," he breathed, relieved. 

A couple of minutes later the helicopter hovered over them. Two men and a rescue stretcher were lowered down to Daniel and Tom. Daniel stood aside as they prepared Tom for transport. 

"DANNY!!!" 

Daniel looked up and saw Linda on the rim. She was breathing hard from all the climbing she had done. She paced back and forth on the flat area, still running on adrenaline. 

"Is that his wife?" one of the medics asked. 

"Yes," Daniel replied. 

"Tell her we'll pick her up on top." 

" Okay." 

Daniel waved his arms to get Linda's attention since he couldn't holler over the noise of the helicopter. Once she saw him, he pointed to the helicopter then to her. 

The second medic removed his harness, helped Daniel put it on, and clipped his rope to it. "You go ahead and I'll follow you " 

"Okay. Thanks." 

The other medic signaled their readiness and they were lifted up into the helicopter. The second medic sent his rope back down and the first one hitched himself to it and was lifted up. Then the helicopter moved forward and over the flat area. The first medic was lowered did the same thing with Linda. Then they headed in a southeasterly direction. 

"We're taking him to the hospital in Miles City." 

"Okay . . . I also called the school and told them not to have the students come up until we know what's happening." 

"Good thinking," Daniel said. 

"We'll have to call them later and update them." 

Daniel nodded. He just hoped that they might have good news when that time came. 

Linda sat back next to Daniel and let the medics work with Tom. Daniel could tell that she was in shock. Tears appeared in her eyes. She lowered her head. Daniel wrapped his arms around her. 

"God, Danny . . . Do you think he'll make it?" 

"I hope so." He didn't want to tell her how close it had really been. He didn't want upset her more. 

The heart monitor started blaring. Daniel looked up at the monitor. Oh . . . God . . . 

"He's fibrillating!" the second medic said. 

The first one got out the pads. 

"Clear!" Snap! Linda and Daniel looked at each other, panic in both sets of eyes. 

The monitor was still blaring. 

"Again! Clear!" Snap! 

The monitor started bleeping again. 

"Thank God . . . " Linda breathed, tears running down her cheeks now. When Daniel looked at her she could see there were tears in his eyes, too. He hugged her tightly, trying to maintain control of his emotions. 

Tom's heartbeat had grown stronger and he remained stable for the rest of the flight. 

******************** 

When they arrived at the hospital, the medics immediately took Tom to the emergency room and instructed Linda and Daniel to go to a nearby waiting room. They waited for nearly an hour. Daniel held Linda's hand in an effort to comfort her. She was very distant right now, no doubt very worried as was Daniel. He didn't want to lose Tom either. They had become quite close before he had gone to work for the SGC. Tom and Linda were two of the few people that really understood him. He regretted the fact that he hadn't seen more of them in the last few years. 

A doctor approached them. Linda and Daniel looked up in anticipation. Daniel could tell by the doctor's grim countenance that he had bad news. He tried to steel himself, but his heart sunk as the doctor said, "I'm sorry. He went into cardiac arrest. We couldn't resuscitate him. His neck was broken and he had too many internal injuries." Daniel could see the deep regret in the man's eyes. The doctor turned and started to leave. Linda immediately broke into sobs and collapsed into Daniel's arms. Daniel felt hot tears rolling down his cheeks, too, but he quickly regained his composure. 

"Wait!" Daniel called after the doctor. "Can we see him?" 

"Certainly. Please follow me." Daniel helped Linda up and they followed the doctor down the corridor. They walked through an open door and saw Tom lying on the bed. He looked peaceful now. 

Linda moved closer to the bed slowly. Daniel stood back, allowing her some space. She leaned over and put her head on Tom's chest and started sobbing again. She was inconsolable. 

Daniel walked up behind Linda and stared in disbelief. Just a few hours ago Tom had been so vital and full of life. It was so senseless. Life is too precious to be thrown away like this. Poor Linda. His heart certainly went out to her. He knew the loneliness of losing a spouse. He didn't know if he would ever find Sha're, but he hoped he would. At least he still had that hope. 

Linda interrupted his thoughts by standing up. "Good-bye Tom. I'm really going to miss you." Her voice broke. Daniel put his hands on her shoulders to comfort her. She reached up and grasped one of them. Her hand was shaking. He grasped it and held it. She looked up and saw the sympathy in his clear blue eyes. She also saw the tear tracks on his cheeks. He had been crying right along with her. Then she saw his expression change. "What is it, Danny?" 

Daniel gazed at floor and then back at her. "He told me to tell you . . . he loves you . . . " He barely managed to get the words out. He looked down at the floor again, tears running down his face once again. 

"I know," Linda replied softly. "I love him, too. That will never change." She looked up at Daniel, noting how agonized he really was. 

"Tom meant a great deal to you, too, didn't he?" 

"Yes." 

"I love him so much . . . " Daniel wished he could do more for her. The look in his eyes must have revealed this because Linda said "Danny, you're doing enough just by being here for me." She was silent for a short time. 

Daniel shook his head, despairing about the senselessness of the accident. He could see that Linda was devastated. "I wish I could have done more." 

"You couldn't have done anything more, Danny. Please don't blame yourself. She turned back to look at Tom one last time. "Thank you for staying with him, Danny. That means more to me than you can know." She knew it was not in Daniel's nature to abandon anyone, but she felt she had to say the words anyway. 

Daniel just stood silently holding her shoulders and willing himself not to cry again. 

"Good-bye, Tom . . . I'd like to go now . . ." Linda said quietly. Daniel nodded and they left the room. 

********************* 

In the hospital lobby, Daniel composed himself and mentioned their need to find accommodations, contact the school, and find a way to get back to Bozeman. 

"Actually, I don't want to go back to Bozeman." 

"What?" Daniel asked, surprised. "What would you like to do, then?" He stood facing her with his arms folded. 

"Tom wanted to complete that dig. It meant so much to him." 

"So . . . what are you suggesting . . . " 

"I want to finish that dig." 

"Now? Are . . . are you sure you're up to that?" Daniel asked, plainly concerned. 

"Yes . . . Also . . . " 

"What?" 

"Tom said that when he died he wanted his ashes to be buried near one of the digs . . . He wanted to be out there where he loved working so much . . . He didn't want any fancy service or grave or anything like that . . . " She paused and looked down at the pavement. "We need to have him cremated and take his ashes back to the site." 

"Okay, Linda. We could make the arrangements tomorrow." 

"Yeah, that sounds good . . . Danny?" 

"Yes?" 

"I...would . . . " Linda sounded very hesitant. 

Daniel dropped his arms and clasped his hands together in front of him. "Go ahead. It's okay," he reassured her. 

"I would be grateful if you would still help me with the dig . . . " 

"Of course I will." 

"It's going to take some time." 

"Linda, I'll stay as long as I can." 

"Don't you have any other commitments?" 

"Don't worry. I'll take care of them." 

"Thanks, Danny." 

"Sure. You and Tom deserve that much." Daniel's mind moved to more practical things. "Maybe we could get our rooms now . . . " 

"Yeah," Linda agreed. 

They made arrangements with a motel and found transportation. Once they were there, they checked in. 

"Do you feel like eating?" 

"No, not really, but I probably need to." 

"There's a restaurant just down the street. I could go get something and bring it back." 

"That sounds good, Danny. I'm so tired. I just want to sit for a bit." She started unlocking the door to her room. 

"Okay. I'll be back soon." He strode off through the parking lot. 

******************** 

It was a very long night for Daniel. He kept thinking about Tom and their friendship. He remembered the times they had spent together, how they had teased and cajoled each other. Daniel also thought about Linda and the pain she must be going through right now. He knew that she was a strong woman and that she would eventually work through this. Still, it really hurt him to see her suffer like this. Tom hadn't deserved this death. Life is really unfair sometimes, he thought bitterly. He decided to go for a walk. 

Daniel passed by Linda's room and noticed that the light was on. He debated about knocking on the door. He raised his hand and knocked quietly. Linda answered it, looking drained. "You could sleep either," she commented. 

"No, I was going to go for a walk. I saw that you still had your light on. I wanted to see how you were." 

"A little better . . . I sure do miss him, though." 

"Do you want to go with me?" 

"Yeah." She reached for her room key and her wallet which were both on the night stand and they left together. 

They walked for a short distance silently. Then Linda turned to Daniel. "How are you holding up?" 

He sighed. "I could be doing better. . . Life is so unfair." 

"Yeah, it certainly seems like it, doesn't it? He never expected it." 

"No, he didn't." Daniel remembered what Tom had said to him when he was lying there at the base of the formation: Not exactly what I had in mind . . . Daniel's face contorted with the memory. Linda noticed. 

"Danny, what is it?" 

"I was just remembering what Tom said to me before he died . . . " He paused and then continued. "He said that he didn't have been falling in mind. He also said that Terry would have to wait until he could come back. Only later he realized that he might not come back . . . " 

Linda could see that Daniel felt guilty. 

"You think it's your fault, don't you?" 

Daniel didn't respond. 

"Why?" 

"I don't know . . . I guess I still wish I could have done more." 

"Please don't do that to yourself. You did everything you possibly could. It was a horrible accident. We'll get over it in time." 

Daniel stared down at his feet. I'm not so sure of that, I still miss Sha're as much as when she was first abducted and it's been a little over two years. I know she's not dead, but sometimes it feels like she is. 

"Danny? Danny . . . ?" 

Daniel looked at Linda. "Yeah?" 

"You were a million miles away." 

"I was just thinking about how much stronger you are than I am." 

"Why do you say that?" 

"You seem to take death as a matter of course." 

"I'm not as strong as you think, Danny. Deep down I'm hurting a great deal right now. I'm just as hurt by this as you are." 

"I'm sorry!" Daniel exclaimed quickly. "I didn't mean to imply . . . " 

"That's okay. I sometimes put on a face that makes me seem much tougher than I really am. I guess that's just how I get through life. Don't let it show." 

"That's not entirely true, Linda. You certainly your showed feelings earlier in the hospital. I had no doubt about how you felt." 

"I wish I had your courage, Danny. You're not afraid to talk about your feelings. I wish I had the guts to do that. I always felt I had to keep things in. My family didn't allow for such open communication." 

'Oh, if you only knew.' Daniel did not feel like going into a long discussion of his family life. "I guess that's just the way I learned to be." 

"I find it easier to be open with you than with anyone else I've known." 

"Even Tom?" 

"Oh, I always communicated very well with Tom. We never kept anything from each other." She smiled sadly. "That's one of the things I'm really going to miss about him. He never discounted anything I said no matter how wild it might be. You don't discount me either, Danny. I want to thank you for that." 

"I've never had any reason to doubt what you say." 

"That's why you're willing to help me with Terry?" 

"Yes." 

"It doesn't sound weird or silly to you?" 

"No." 

"You mean that?" 

Daniel was all too familiar with that question. How many times had asked others that very same question, almost as if he couldn't believe them. "Yes, I mean it." 

Linda looked closely at him. 

"Look. Let me tell you something. I didn't pursue archaeology just because I loved it. That was my way of remembering how much they really meant to me. I really do understand why you want to do the work on Terry. It's your way of maintaining Tom's memory, of accomplishing the goal that he couldn't see through. I will be right there with you to do that. Count on it." 

"Thanks, Danny. I'm glad you understand." 

Daniel noticed that they were walking by a coffee shop. "Would you like to get a cup of coffee?" 

"Sure. I don't think I 'm going to be getting much sleep tonight anyway." 

They walked inside the restaurant. 

********************* 

Three days later Linda and Daniel tossed their day packs in a rented sports utility vehicle. Linda set the urn containing Tom's ashes on the back seat. 

"Well, we're on our way," Linda remarked as she reached for her cup of coffee. 

"Yep," Daniel agreed. He had called General Hammond and explained the situation to him. The General had granted him a month's leave and said that he would find a replacement for Daniel while he was gone. 

"I never really thought I'd be going there without Tom. We did most of our work together. Only on very rare occasions were we sent to different sites. Two hikers found Terry last fall. They called up the museum and Tom went out there with them to see what they had found and marked it so he could find it again this summer. Last year was a boom year for T-Rexes. We found six altogether." 

Daniel reflected sadly for a moment about the work that Tom wouldn't be able to complete. Then he remarked. "They don't usually find that many meat-eaters at one time do they? I thought most of the finds were plant-eaters." 

"That's right. Before that only twelve T-rex skeletons were known to exist in the entire country. Montana is really turning out to be a treasure trove for this particular dinosaur." 

"That's really neat. It's too bad Tom's not here to enjoy it." 

"We will enjoy it for him. That's what he would want." 

"Yes," Daniel agreed. 

They continued down the road. 

******************** 

As soon as they reached the site, Linda and Daniel gathered the students and assistants together to bury Tom's ashes. They hiked down a drainage until they found a quiet place under a cottonwood tree. Daniel dug the hole and Linda respectfully placed the urn in it. Then Daniel buried it. They quietly paid their respects to Tom while the others looked on. After they had finished speaking the rest of the group dispersed and went back to work leaving Linda and Daniel alone. 

"Well this is really it," Linda said through her tears. "It's done. Now I have to go on without him." She sounded so desolate that it broke Daniel's heart. He embraced her tightly. 

"You don't have to go on alone, Linda," he said softly through his own tears. "I'm here for you as long as you need me . . . whenever you need me . . . " 

"I know. Thank you." 

"You're welcome." 

They remained this way for a while. Then they got up and hiked back up to Terry. 

********************* 

Linda and Daniel both devoted themselves to removing the bones. They got up early and worked until sunset, only taking breaks for meals. It was a long and arduous task, but well worth it. Daniel learned much about how to remove the bones and jacket them so they could be transported to the museum. In some ways he noted that it wasn't that different from participating in an archaeological dig. He could see why Tom had been so enthusiastic about his work. 

On the seventh evening, Daniel had just finished when Linda approached him. "Well, we get the day off tomorrow. We can go over to Glasgow and get rooms. I sure wouldn't mind getting a decent shower!" 

Daniel smiled. He knew he needed one, too. Sponge baths just didn't quite do the job. 

"We can also do our laundry and pick up more food." 

"Sounds good." Daniel said as they headed for the camp. 

Daniel turned to Linda. "You know, I'm really glad we came back here. I don't think I've enjoyed myself this much in a long time. I can see why Tom loved it so much." 

"Yeah, I don't think I'd want to do anything else with my life. I like studying other things but not nearly as much as I enjoy this. It's always an adventure. You never know what you might run into. I wouldn't give it up for anything." 

Everyone sat by the fire and told jokes and stories for a while. Daniel looked up at the sky and spotted a meteor. "Look, falling star!" 

Everyone else looked up. They kept looking for a little while longer and spotted a few more meteors. 

"Meteor shower, right?" Daniel asked. 

"Yeah, the June Lyrids. I looked up the meteor showers ahead of time in case I was up late and wanted to watch them," Linda commented. 

Daniel nodded and looked at the sky again. He saw a pretty blue meteor shoot across the sky. He just stared at it in awe. 

Finally the group put out the fire and went to bed. 

********************** 

It was around noon when Linda and Daniel checked into the motel. Daniel unlocked the door and walked into the room and tossed his backpack on the bed. Linda was taking a shower in her room. 

Daniel sat on the bed and picked up the phone to call the General and give him an update. He dialed and went through the process of reversing the charges. "General Hammond? It's Daniel. I thought I'd check in with you and let you know our progress." 

Pause. 

"The dig is going really well. I may be back sooner than I thought." 

Pause. 

"You want me to come back, General?" 

Pause. 

"Live . . . dinosaurs . . . ?" 

Pause. 

"So you want us both Linda and I to go back to the mountain. Now or when we're done here?" 

Pause. 

"You're going to give her clearance?" 

Pause. 

"Yes, sir. She can be trusted. I've known her for a long time. I'll vouch for her." 

Pause. 

"I'll talk to her, sir. I don't think she'll want to pass up this opportunity. I'll call you back and let you know what she says and when we can head back." 

"Thank you, sir. Bye." He hung up the phone. 

This new prospect really excited Daniel. He couldn't wait to tell Linda. He realized he'd have to tell about the Stargate Project, too, but they really needed her help now. 

Daniel walked over to Linda's her room and knocked on the door. No one responded. He walked back to his room and took his shower, too. 

About a half hour later Daniel knocked on Linda's door again. This time she answered and let him in. 

"Linda, we have to talk." 

"Sure, Danny. What's up?" 

Daniel sat in a chair and gathered his thoughts. He wasn't exactly sure where to begin. "Well, we just been handed an even better opportunity than we have here." 

"What do you mean?" 

"We have a chance to see live dinosaurs." 

Linda looked at Daniel as if he had just gone out of his mind. "There are no live dinosaurs, Danny . . . " 

"Not here . . . " 

"If not here, then . . . where?" She was trying very hard to comprehend what he was talking about. "Danny . . . ?" 

"Linda, this is serious." 

She remained quiet, waiting for him to continue. 

"You remember that I told you I had been away for all that time. Well, I've been working with the government on a top secret project" 

"That's why you never talked about that time. You usually tell me about your little adventures. Your silence about the last few years sure had me wondering." 

"It was something I couldn't talk about . . . until now. You see, the Stargate was discovered in Egypt in 1928 and about four years ago I figured out how to make it work. Now we use it to travel to other planets and explore them. Well, they sent a probe though to one of the planets and discovered living dinosaurs there. We don't have any paleontologists on staff at the Mountain. I could do my best to help them, but my knowledge is much more limited than yours. Linda, we need your expertise to understand these dinosaurs." 

Linda stared back at Daniel wondering if she had just been transported into some kind of science fiction movie. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. At the same time she knew that Daniel was a very level-headed person and he certainly wouldn't lie to her. 

"Linda, I'm telling you the truth," Daniel said sincerely. 

"I believe you, Danny. It's just really amazing!" 

"Would you be willing to help us? " 

"Danny, you know me well enough to know that I can't pass up an opportunity to study live dinosaurs.. I know Tom would have jumped at the chance to see live dinosaurs. Count me in." 

"You'll probably want to finish digging Terry first, won't you?" 

"Actually, I think I'd rather go now." 

Daniel did a double take. "Are you sure about that?" 

"Yeah. I'll call the school. They can send Dr. Anderson to replace us. He can probably be there by tomorrow." 

"Great! Thanks Linda." 

"You're more than welcome." 

Linda reached for the phone. Linda called Dr. Anderson and explained that something had come up and they were needed elsewhere. She didn't give him the details. She talked a little further and then hung up. "He'll be there tomorrow afternoon." 

"I'll call General Hammond and let him know that we're on our way."   
  



	2. Cretaceous

TITLE: Mesozoic Part 2: Cretaceous 

AUTHOR: Starrynight 

DATE: 2/8/2002 

EMAIL: starry_night_100@hotmail.com 

CATEGORY: Series: Mesozoic; Challenge; Drama; Action/Adventure; Angst; Hurt/comfort 

PAIRINGS: None 

SPOILERS: "Thor's Hammer"( minor); "Crystal Skull" ( minor) 

SEASON/SEQUEL: 3/ Before Legacy; part two of a continuing series 

RATING: PG 

CONTENT WARNINGS: 

SUMMARY: SG-1 and a new paleontologist are surveying a planet with surprising residents and encounter unexpected guests. . . 

STATUS: Revised 

ARCHIVE:Heliopolis, Belle's Place, FanFiction.Net 

DISCLAIMER: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. I have written this story for entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without the permission of the author.   
  


AUTHOR'S NOTES: Thanks to Rodlox, Orac, Bead, Kdog, Araldesse, CalicoCat, and Gracie for beta reading this for me! You're efforts really helped! :)   
  


Useful dinosaur sites:   
  


Dinosauricon   
  


Zoom Dinosaur   
  


Discovery.com Fossil Zone   
  
  
  


********************   
  


Eight millennia before present...   
  


The Council of Elders of the Ancients met in the Great Hall on the planet Hesperia. Selected members of the scientific community stood respectfully as the Prime Elder rose and stepped up to the podium. Then they all sat and listened.   
  


"We have chosen you from among the scientists to inform you of our momentous decision. We, the Council of Elders, have decided that our people need to relocate to another region of the universe to search for greater knowledge. We can learn no more in this region. You have initiated experiments on various planets within the galaxies of this region and we wish you to stay and continue these. We will send representatives to ascertain your progress. This exodus is in the best interest of all Ancients. We must advance. Please return to your assigned locations and await our representatives. They will arrive at the appropriate time." The Prime Elder stepped away from the podium and the Council of Elders filed out of the Great Hall. The scientists stood and started talking among themselves. 

  
  


********************   
  


Present....   
  


The MALP image from P3D-664 appeared on the video monitor. Everyone's eyes widened in surprise. Several small creatures quickly made their way toward the probe.   
  


"Well, General, looks like a different crowd this time," Colonel O'Neill remarked.   
  


"Dinosaurs?" Major Carter gasped, unable to take her eyes off the screen. "But . . . how?"   
  


Teal'c remained silent, taking it all in. Then he spoke. "It will definitely be a challenging assignment."   
  


"But we don't have that kind of expertise. How are we . . . ?" Sam asked.   
  


They continued to watch the video. More inquisitive little dinosaurs gathered to inspect this strange new object that had crawled onto their world. In the distance, a long-necked elephantine dinosaur lumbered slowly into view and stopped to eat the ferns that covered the ground. The four could only stare at a relict group of animals from a time long before man had appeared on Earth.   
  


There's no evidence of the Goa'uld here, sir," Sam said, looking at the General.   
  


"Then this will be a strictly exploratory mission."   
  


"Yes, sir."   
  


"Dr. Jackson should be calling me soon to apprise me concerning the dinosaur dig," Hammond commented. "I'm going to ask that he and Dr. Ramsey return as soon as possible. If Dr. Ramsey agrees to accept this assignment, we'll listen to her evaluation and then handle the other details of the mission. Is there anything else?"   
  


The others looked at each other, but no one responded.   
  


"If that's all, then you're dismissed."   
  
  
  


********************   
  


Knowledge Master Lucius carried out his duties mechanically as the invisible Ancient ship orbited P3D-664. He thought that he would go insane if he had to continue observing these dinosaurs. Nonetheless, the Council of Elders had ordered this and he should obey them. He had always served them loyally, but now this assignment tired him. He had already read every document, treatise and history in the ship's vast library countless times.   
  


"The Council had said that they would send a representative. It has been too long. Where is this representative? He is not coming. They have forgotten us," Lucius grumbled, embittered at the boredom the Council had forced him to endure.   
  


"Are you certain of that, Knowledge Master?" his apprentice, Cassius, respectfully asked as he, using sophisticated scanners to observe the dinosaurs below. "The Council said they send the representative at the appropriate time."   
  


"Appropriate time? I have lived nine thousand years and you, my apprentice, eight thousand five-hundred years. This world is virtually the same as when I first started watching. The ones who began this experiment learned much more. They terraformed the planet and brought the creatures here, causing great things to take place, but we do not see such progress anymore. What is appropriate about waiting so long?"   
  


"We have seen things happen."   
  


"Certainly. We watch the same creatures reproduce, eat, fight and die. But where is the novelty in that?" Lucius ground out as he attended to another panel.   
  


"Many generations of Ancients devoted their time to see that this experiment succeeded, and it has." Cassius followed him, not understanding why the Knowledge Master was so upset.   
  


"Then, if it is so successful, why are we still here? This place does not need our supervision. It will flourish without us. I wish to leave so I may learn something different, something more challenging." Lucius moved to a third panel and stared at its controls.   
  


"Then you would abandon this experiment, Knowledge Master?"   
  


"If no representative comes . . . Or I would change it."   
  


"Knowledge Master? You are not serious, are you?"   
  


"This climate is so ideal. If I adjust a few things, I could change that," Lucius moved his hand over the controls as if threatening to alter them.   
  


"So you would cause harm to this planet?" Cassius asked in disbelief.   
  


"No, not now, but... " He turned and glared at the younger Ancient. "Attend to your studies, Cassius. Do not concern yourself with this. I will see to it."   
  


Cassius turned away from Lucius and walked slowly toward the corridor that led to his chamber. ~Knowledge Master, please do not do something that you will regret.~ He decided to meditate on what had he and the Knowledge Master had discussed and determine a course of action.   
  


********************   
  


Linda was driving south from Bozeman toward Colorado Springs. "Wow, Danny! I'm really looking forward to seeing living dinosaurs. I thought that the dinosaurs were unique to earth, but I guess that's not true. This is one time I don't mind being proven wrong."   
  


Daniel didn't reply but just continued staring out the passenger window.   
  


"Hey . . . What's up? Am I boring you?"   
  


He turned to face her. "No, Linda, I was just thinking."   
  


"Pretty serious thinking, I'd say."   
  


"I never told you that I'm married did I?" 

Linda looked at him, surprised. "No, I had no idea. Why didn't your wife come with you? I'd love to meet her."   
  


"Sha're couldn't come because she's missing . . . "   
  


"What happened to her?"   
  


"A parasitic race, the Goa'uld, abducted her when I was living on Abydos."   
  


"Abydos? That's another place or planet?"   
  


"Another planet. It was the first planet we visited to using the Stargate. We helped free the Abydonian people from the Goa'uld, at least temporarily. I met Sha're there, married her, and stayed behind when the rest of my team returned to Earth. A year later, when the Goa'uld came back and took both Sha're and her brother, Skaara, I returned to Earth. I've been searching for her ever since." Linda saw his pained expression and understood.   
  


"Danny, I don't know what to say. I'm really sorry. Do you think you'll ever find her?"   
  


"I don't know, but I'm still looking."   
  


"How long has it been?"   
  


"A little over two years."   
  


~My God. Many people would have given up by now, but not Danny.~ "Well, as long as she's alive, there's still hope. Don't give up. Keep looking for her, Danny. Keep looking until you find her."   
  


"I will, Linda. I know she's out there somewhere."   
  


"I can help, too, Danny. Don't forget that. I may not be able to go to all those places, but you can always talk to me. "   
  


Suddenly Daniel looked guilty. "But what about you, Linda? I've just burdened you with my problem and you're still coping with Tom's death. I'm sorry."   
  


"Look, what you're dealing with isn't that different. I'm sure you miss Sha're a lot."   
  


" Some days have been really difficult."   
  


"Well, we can help each other."   
  


"Yes, we can."   
  


They stopped talking and Linda turned up the radio as they continued down the road.   
  


After a little while, Linda turned the radio down again. "Danny, can you tell me more about the Goa'uld?"   
  


Daniel didn't really want to talk about them, but he felt that Linda should know since she could encounter them when traveling through the Stargate. He prepared himself and started to describe humanity's confrontation with the Goa'uld.   
  


********************   
  


Before starting the briefing, General Hammond introduced Sam, Jack, and Teal'c to Dr. Ramsey. Then he faced Linda. "We'd like to show you the tape from our probe and see what you can tell us." He motioned to Sam who started the video player and handed Linda the remote control.   
  


Several little dinosaurs walked into view, curious about the object that had just crawled toward them. Others followed, all equally inquisitive.   
  


Linda froze the image. "Those are hypsolophodons, small herbivores from the Cretaceous period of the Mesozoic era." Linda let the tape run again.   
  


As the small dinosaurs continued inspecting the probe, a long-necked dinosaur crossed the view some distance away. Linda stopped the tape once more.   
  


"That's a sauropod, but I can't say which one. It's too far away to tell."   
  


"That's all we have from the MALP." Sam said. "However, we do have a tape of our initial UAV flight."   
  


"Okay," Linda replied.   
  


"Dr. Ramsey, what are you recommendations for exploring this planet further?" the General asked.   
  


"I wouldn't advise sending anyone there, at least not yet. It could be very risky. We didn't see any predators, but they could be out there and they're extremely dangerous. Velociraptors and Dromaeosaurs could rip someone up in no time. I can tell you more after I see the UAV tape."   
  


"I, for one, don't feel like being shredded alive, thank you very much," Jack commented.   
  


"Then we'll just do a remote survey for now," Hammond said. "Dr. Ramsey, go ahead and review the video and prepare to plan more surveys. We'll meet again at 0800 tomorrow."   
  


"Yes, sir. I'd like Dr. Jackson to help me. Anyone else who's interested can also join us, if they'd like."   
  


The others nodded.   
  


"Anything else?" Hammond asked.   
  


Everyone shook their heads.   
  


"Dismissed."   
  


********************   
  


Linda and Daniel decided to watch the whole video the first time and then review the details. They sat in front of the video monitor and Linda started the tape.   
  


The UAV had passed over the area in a low circular pattern which centered around the Stargate. Trees, palm-like cycads, and tree ferns filled the lush green landscape. Soon the UAV had moved over a vast lake as it had straightened, and had moved out toward its next anchor point. Then it had banked again. Many dinosaurs moved along the lake's shores, from very small to gargantuan. Enormous sauropods drank from the it; further down the shore, duck-billed dinosaurs browsed the conifers.   
  


Linda and Daniel both stared in awe.   
  


"Well, Danny, this is the real McCoy. No computer generation or animatronics here."   
  


"Yeah. They're incredible. "   
  


"I never thought I'd see anything like this in my lifetime." 

The UAV had flown over an enormous flying reptile, keeping pace with it. Its body was at least four times the size of a man and its wingspan very wide. It soared majestically, only beating its long membranous wings occasionally. The UAV had repositioned, wing to wing with the giant reptileas the animal had turned its head and looked at it.   
  


"Sam must have had fun with this one," Daniel remarked, pointing to the image of the pterosaur looking at them.   
  


The view below had opened again and the landscape was now a broad plain. A large herd of sauropod dinosaurs migrated at a slow pace, moving in formation, with the younger ones in the midst of the herd and the adults surrounding them for protection. The UAV had swooped alongside the herd to show the animals' great height. They were nearly as tall as the tallest trees that they were approaching, and their front legs were much longer than their hind ones.   
  


After flying a short distance with the reptile the UAV had turned at the next anchor point and circled once more. Then it had passed over a throng of crested duckbill dinosaurs making low trombone-like noises as they moved toward the forest. The UAV had also encountered a group of small predatory dinosaurs stalking a herd of horned dinosaurs on the edge of the forest. The video ended.   
  


Linda rewound the tape and started with the flying reptile. She froze the image and wrote something on her clipboard.   
  


"That's a pterodactyl, isn't it?" Daniel asked.   
  


"Yeah, Quetzocoatlus."   
  


"Named after the Aztec feathered serpent god." ~Or a mysterious misty being in a large cavern~, Daniel thought, remembering a conversation with his grandfather, Nick. 

Linda nodded.   
  


Daniel noticed that the UAV cast a small shadow on the creature's back and wings. "How big is it, anyway?"   
  


"The wingspan is as wide as a fighter plane."   
  


"That's big! The condor doesn't even come close."   
  


Linda let the tape play again. "Hey, buddy." She waved when the UAV had changed position and the pterosaur looked at it.   
  


Daniel laughed. "Sam will be happy to hear that you enjoyed this so much."   
  


"Yeah, up close and personal with Quetzocoatlus." Linda smiled. "Well, on to the sauropods . . . " 

********************   
  


Late that night, Daniel worked with Linda, identifying the last few dinosaurs on the UAV video. He sat at her desk reviewing a dinosaur web site, comparing the differences among some of the species they had already identified. He looked up and noticed that she stared vacantly at the monitor.   
  


"Linda?"   
  


She didn't respond.   
  


Daniel stood up and walked over to her. "Linda, how's it going?"   
  


Linda jumped, startled by his question. "What?"   
  


"You were somewhere else, weren't you?"   
  


"Yeah. " 

"It's late. If Jack finds out we're still working, he's gonna drag . . . " Linda started shaking her head slowly as she continued eyeing the image on the screen. Finally she stopped the tape.   
  


"I'm sorry, Danny."   
  


"Why?" he asked as he sat in the empty chair next to her.   
  


"I'm so close to finishing this, but I keep thinking about . . . " Linda looked down and Daniel noticed that she carefully controlled her feelings.   
  


"About Tom."   
  


"Yeah. " Linda said, her voice trembling as she barely nodded . "I really miss him. We probably would have been doing this together . . ."   
  


Daniel gently laid his hand on her shoulder. "Linda, maybe you need to take a break. You've been at it for a long time."   
  


Linda attempted to pull herself together. "I can't. I have to continue. General Hammond needs this in the morning and I don't want to disappoint him."   
  


"Pushing yourself so hard won't help. If you can't finish in time, General Hammond could postpone the briefing."   
  


Linda stared at the monitor.   
  


"Are you sure you don't need to relax for a few minutes?" 

"No. I'd better keep working."   
  


Daniel sighed. "Okay. Well, I'm going to go get some coffee. Would you like some?"   
  


"Sure. Thanks."   
  


"You're welcome."   
  


Daniel rose and walked toward the door. He looked over his shoulder at Linda, knowing that she couldn't keep up the facade much longer; her emotions would break through. He also knew that Hammond was a fair man.   
  


When Daniel returned, Linda wasn't there. He thought she might have taken a break after all. He walked over, sat in front of the video monitor, attempting to identify the animals. After a half hour, he began to wonder if she intended to come back. While she was gone, he had identified two types of dinosaurs that she hadn't listed. Daniel stopped and thought for a minute. Then he realized where she might have gone and why. He walked out of the office.   
  


Daniel climbed up the hill outside the complex, making his way toward a small knoll Linda stood. He approached slowly, so he wouldn't startle her, and stood beside her. She was looking up at the stars.   
  


"Tom always loved the stars. We used to spend hours staring at them and watching meteor showers. He'd say . . . " Suddenly she dropped her head and started sobbing.   
  


Daniel gently put his arms around her. Her tremors shook him and he could feel a tear move down his cheek as his throat constricted and his insides tightened.   
  


Eventually Linda stopped crying.   
  


"He's gone . . . Oh God . . . He's really gone . . . isn't he . . . ?"   
  


"Yes."   
  


"I keep seeing Tom. When I'm working . . . it's like he's right there . . . looking over my shoulder . . . and when I look . . . "   
  


Daniel remained silent, just letting her talk and listening.   
  


"Everything I'm doing right now reminds me of how much Tom would have enjoyed doing this, and he'll never have the chance . . ." Linda's voice broke, but she gathered herself and continued. " I can't quit. You guys need my help. I should be handling this better."   
  


"Linda, it's okay," Daniel reassured her.   
  


"Was this the way it was with your wife at first? I know she's still alive, but . . . "   
  


"Yeah." Daniel replied somberly. "Actually, it still feels that way sometimes." 

"I keep telling myself that Tom didn't mean to fall . . . that it was an accident . . . but it hurts so much . . . Oh God, how it hurts . . . " She buried her face against Daniel's chest as her grief overwhelmed her again.   
  


Daniel continued to embrace Linda until she settled down. He knew that she hadn't slept much in days. She had kept pushing herself, hoping to reduce her pain.   
  


"Maybe we'd better go inside so you can rest."   
  


Linda nodded slowly as Daniel released her. She wiped the tears from her face and they started walking down the hill toward the complex. When they reached their destination, Linda stopped and looked at Daniel.   
  


"What?"   
  


Linda looked up at the sky and then at Daniel again. "I'm sorry."   
  


Daniel shook his head sympathetically. "Linda, I understand."   
  


"Well . . . you're right."   
  


"About what?"   
  


"I really do need more time. I'm going to ask General Hammond if he'll give me until noon tomorrow. "   
  


"I think he will, especially considering what you've been through, lately."   
  


"I hope so. I don't want to ruin this mission for everyone."   
  


"Linda, you aren't ruining anything. General Hammond's reasonable."   
  


Linda nodded.   
  


Daniel opened the door and they entered the complex.   
  


********************   
  


The invisible Ancient watched the dinosaurs.   
  


~Magnificent creatures, Cassius thought, ~but Knowledge Master Lucius is right. How much longer can I go on with them as my only source of diversion. I need something else to occupy me. I stay with these creatures, but for what purpose? We could have completed the experiment, but our grandiose comrades decided that they must go elsewhere to learn.~   
  


He watched an armored Ankylosaurus trudge by.   
  


~Your life is suitable for you, but I need more. Nothing here satisfies me now. All I do anymore is repeat the Council's propaganda to the Knowledge Master and he is sick of hearing it. I will go back to the ship and see what new experiments I can help Knowledge Master Lucius devise from there. If the representative has not arrived by now, he is not coming. Why not change things?~ 

Just as Cassius prepared to press the transporter button on his wristband and depart, a T-Rex roared. A Daspletosaurus standing over a kill answered in kind and stood its ground. T-Rex moved closer and bellowed again. Daspletosaurus wouldn't relinquish its meal. The T-Rex threatened it, looking very mean, ugly and big. Finally, Daspletosaurus relented and plodded off to find another carcass. T-Rex roared its victory and started feeding on the remains.   
  


~Even the battles of the strong dinosaurs do not interest me.~   
  


Again he moved to press the button. Then he heard a rustling noise and looked behind him. ~It is probably just another dinosaur~, he thought. But what came out of the trees didn't look like a dinosaur. ~Most intriguing.~ He eyed the machine as it approached and noticed the antenna and the camera. ~So who has finally come to visit our planet? You must be looking for something unusual here. Well I can provide some entertainment for you.~ Cassius became visible for one second. ~That should raise many questions in your minds.~ Cassius pressed the transporter button and vanished.   
  


********************   
  


Sam maneuvered the MALP through the forest, performing their first major survey. A strange form suddenly appeared before the machine and disappeared.   
  


"Did you guys see that?" Sam asked, surprised.   
  


"Yeah," Daniel replied. "It didn't look like any dinosaur I've ever seen."   
  


"Well, what do ya think it was then?" Jack inquired.   
  


" At first glance it resembled a dinosaur, but it had the stance, limb proportions, and skull shape of a human," Linda remarked. "However, the eyes and the nose were unusual and it didn't have any ears, but it had a lot of fingers and toes.   
  


"So it's a dino-human, then?" Jack asked.   
  


"No," Daniel said. "It's more alien than that."   
  


"We'll have to review the tape," Linda said.   
  


After they finished the survey, Sam rewound the tape and froze the image of the creature while they carefully examined it. The being appeared humanoid but alien, had ,two very large reptilian eyes, two holes for its nose, and two holes for its ears. It also had a large head and very long slender limbs, making it taller than any human. It also sported ten digits on each hand and foot.   
  


The group met with General Hammond and informed him of their discovery. Hammond ordered them to gather more information and report anything new to him.   
  


********************   
  


Cassius sprinted down the corridor toward the main control room. Upon entering, he exclaimed, "Knowledge Master, I have discovered something! I have found a new diversion!"   
  


"And what is that?" Lucius answered. He had also found something intriguing on the planet.   
  


"Scan the large lake near the Stargate. It is a machine sent by another species to explore the planet. I have given them something new to investigate."   
  


"How have you accomplished this?"   
  


"I let them see me. They will be looking for us, Knowledge Master."   
  


"Yes, and we can study something new. You are to be congratulated, Cassius." 

"Thank you, Knowledge Master."   
  


"I scanned our building while you were away and we have other guests. The Goa'uld have come. Our people returned to the ship as soon as we detected their ship. They have entered the building, just as we assumed they would. We shall watch and learn."   
  
  
  


*********************   
  


A week later, Linda walked down the corridor toward Daniel's office. If he was still working this late, like she suspected, she was going to read him the riot act. Why did he have to keep working so late after convincing her that she needed to quit earlier? ~Well, what's good for the goose is good for the gander.~   
  


Daniel's door was open and Linda rapped on the doorpost. He looked up from his work. "Hey, Linda."   
  


"Still at it, I see," she said, mock-seriously. "Since we've completed most of the surveys already, I guess I'm going to have to drag you out of here kicking and screaming so you can relax for a while."   
  


"I thought that was Jack's line," he replied, looking at her impishly.   
  


"Yeah, I just stole it from him for tonight. I've got something I want to share with you," she said, holding out a binder.   
  


"What's that?"   
  


"Join me for a break in the commissary and you'll see."   
  


"Okay," Daniel agreed. "I suppose I need to get out of here anyway."   
  


"Yes, you do, Dr. Jackson. All work and no play makes Danny a dull boy. . . or a fossil."   
  


"Right."   
  


They entered the commissary and found an empty table. "What would you like?" Daniel asked.   
  


"How about some tea?"   
  


"Okay. I'll be right back."   
  


Linda nodded as she sat and gazed at the closed album, gathering the courage to open it.   
  


Daniel returned with tea for Linda and coffee for himself. He looked at her and inquired, "So what's in there?"   
  


"The pictures from the trips you, Tom and I took together. I picked it up when we stopped at Bozeman."   
  


"Yeah, " Daniel said, nodding, noticing her hesitancy. "Having a hard time looking at those again?"   
  


"Actually, I haven't really tried. I wasn't ready until now. " Then she smiled a little. "Well, here goes . . . "   
  


Daniel looked on as she opened the cover. She motioned to him to move closer. Daniel shifted his chair and recognized the picture of Egypt almost immediately. "Oh, yeah. That's the time we went over to Egypt after Tom's graduate professor discovered that sauropod skeleton. I'll never forget how excited Tom was. He couldn't sit still that entire flight. I was wondering if he'd go crazy."   
  


"I wondered about that, too, but you know how exuberant he was."   
  


"Yeah."   
  


Linda slowly turned the pages, sharing each picture with Daniel, until she paused on one of the three of them standing next to a magnificent waterfall. "I'll always remember this." She gently ran her fingers over the picture.   
  


"Neither will I," Daniel agreed, smiling. "Tom proposed to you. I remember him taking you aside, saying he just wanted to talk to you, and I'll never forget the look on your face when you two returned."   
  


"Yeah, happily married for five years . . . at least we had that much. Tom always took good care of me. I hope I did the same for him."   
  


"I'm sure you made him very happy." Daniel said earnestly.   
  


They continued to look through the pictures, talk, and laugh about the good times. Then they came to some loose ones tucked in the back of the album. Linda's hands trembled as she pulled them out and went through them. Daniel remembered that Linda had taken some pictures on their way up the trail to work on Terry, the T-Rex. The last picture showed Tom standing on the edge of the flat area in the badlands, preparing to hike over to the site. He looked anxious to reach his goal.   
  


"That's a good way to remember him, Linda. He was always so excited about making new discoveries, always wanting to explore."   
  


"Little did he know . . ." she said as she stared at that last picture, taken just an hour before that deadly fall. "He was just looking forward to another adventure."   
  


Daniel nodded, smiling ruefully. "But even if Tom's life was short, he certainly didn't waste it."   
  


"That's true, and I intend to make certain that his efforts were worthwhile."   
  


"Yours are, too, Linda. We couldn't have identified all those dinosaurs without your help."   
  


"Thanks. Hey, you want to go out and stargaze for a while?"   
  


"Sure."   
  


Linda put the pictures away and they left the commissary.   
  


********************   
  


The next day, Daniel stood in the doorway of Linda's lab and peered inside. Linda stood by a chalkboard twisting her long braid and staring thoughtfully at the time line she had just diagramed. She drew a bold line on it, separating the Cretaceous and part of the Jurassic from the rest. Then she put the chalk on the tray and gazed at her diagram again.   
  


"Good morning, Linda," Daniel said pleasantly as he stepped inside.   
  


Linda jumped and turned around. "Oh, hi, Danny."   
  


Daniel walked over and stood next to her, looking at the diagram. "So, have you figured out where they all fit?"   
  


"Yeah, and it makes for a very interesting picture."   
  


"How's that?" 

"Well, these populations didn't develop parallel to Earth's. The diversity is way too high. You remember when we went through and matched all the species to their dates?"   
  


"Yeah."   
  


She pointed to the diagram. "This is it worked out. Most of the species are from the Cretaceous, but some are from the late Jurassic. Nothing from the Triassic nor the early and middle Jurassic. It's almost as if they appeared in the late Jurassic and kept going from there." Linda grimaced. "That doesn't make sense, though . . . "   
  


"Maybe they didn't come from that planet."   
  


"What do you mean?"   
  


Daniel cocked his head thoughtfully. "Perhaps someone brought them there."   
  


Linda looked at him, confounded. Then she understood his reasoning. "I suppose that could be true. Someone could have done that, but when and how? Some of these critters are way too big to fit through that Gate."   
  


"Perhaps they introduced them as young and let them mature there."   
  


"That could be . . . But besides the Gate, we haven't seen any evidence of an advanced society on that planet."   
  


"True . . . The Ancients built the Stargates, but someone else could have transplanted the dinosaurs. The other aliens might have transported the dinosaurs by ship, which means we wouldn't see any evidence of their society. They might have moved them to preserve them from the disaster that ultimately destroyed the rest of the dinosaurs or because of their uniqueness."   
  


Linda nodded. "The end of the Cretaceous was disastrous for the dinosaurs. There are several theories on that: volcanoes spewing toxic gases, an asteroid hitting the earth and doing them in, climate changes, the list goes on. So I guess someone might have wanted to preserve them, but it's all a mystery for now. "   
  


Daniel frowned. "Then there's that strange alien that we found during the MALP survey. I wonder if he has anything to do with this."   
  


"Possibly, but we can't be sure without further evidence. Maybe we'll see more when we survey the inland sea."   
  


"Yeah," Daniel agreed.   
  


"The dinosaur populations seem healthy, on the whole,' Linda said. "I haven't seen excessive numbers of sick or dead animals. A few herds of plant eaters have large numbers, but many groups are smaller. That could support your hypothesis that they were transplanted."   
  


Daniel nodded. 

"The reduced numbers show that they probably haven't spread throughout the continent yet, but they may, eventually. According to the evidence found here on Earth, only the large pterosaurs could travel world wide. However, the area we have seen so far is maintaining them and those environments appear sound. If everything goes well, they should thrive."   
  


"Well, that's good to know."   
  


"Hey campers, what's up?" Jack asked as he walked in.   
  


"Oh, we're just discussing the dinosaurs' health," Linda replied.   
  


"How are they doing?"   
  


"They're excellent shape."   
  


"Well, that's just grand," Jack joked. "By the way, Hammond gave the okay to use the helicopter UAV for the inland sea survey."   
  


"Great!" Linda smiled. "It'll be nice to see that ecosystem as a whole, rather than in fragments."   
  


"Carter's down in the Gate Room getting it ready now."   
  


"Fantastic! We should be ready shortly." 

******************** 

The helicopter UAV flew over the gently undulating green sea. Daniel, Sam, Linda and Jack all watched the monitor waiting to see what it would reveal next. They had already seen a variety of dinosaurs and sea creatures. The polarizing lens on the video camera allowed them to see through the reflection on the water's surface and they saw another huge form that rose toward the surface.   
  


"Wow!" Sam exclaimed, pointing to the monstrous sea creature. This animal had the same bulky body as the Elasmosaurus they had seen earlier, but it had a much shorter neck and a huge head. Tentacles hung out of its mouth, the remains of the squid it had just caught. With a big lunge it swallowed its prey and sought more. Other squids and big-shelled ammonites jetted away.   
  


"Mosasaur?" Daniel inquired.   
  


"Yeah," Linda answered. "Let's call him Moses," 

"Hold up there!" Jack exclaimed. "What's that?"   
  


Linda and Daniel both turned and looked at Jack. "Moses." Daniel replied. "We just told you that."   
  


"Not the monster! In the trees over there!" Jack exclaimed in frustration as he pointed at something on the monitor. "Move the UAV closer, Carter."   
  


"Yes, sir," Sam replied and maneuvered the UAV.   
  


"See that?"   
  


"Wait." Daniel looked where Jack indicated. "Yeah, I see it now," he acknowledged, suddenly becoming very serious.   
  


"So do I," Linda stated. "What or who is that?" she asked, staring at the figure in metallic armor.   
  


"Jaffa," Sam stated.   
  


"Great! More Goa'ulds. Just can't seem to get away from them, can we?" Jack grumbled.   
  


"No," Daniel sighed.   
  


Another armored man appeared on the monitor screen. Together, the two stooped over, lifted something and started carrying it.   
  


"Holy cow!" Linda blurted out. "That's a Deinonychus they're hauling away! What on earth would they want with it?"   
  


"A host," Daniel stated.   
  


"Host? That? You're kidding, right?" Linda stared, wide-eyed, at Daniel.   
  


"Possibly, although up to now we've only known of human and Unas hosts," Sam commented.   
  


Unas? What's that? Some kind alien?"   
  


"Yeah, they . . . "   
  


"Hey, kids, we'd better get back on the job, here," Jack said, interrupting Sam.   
  


"I'll tell you later."   
  


"Okay," Linda replied.   
  


"Carter, move the UAV forward and see if we can find anything else."   
  


Sam guided the helicopter forward again.   
  


"Whoa! Looks like a building out there. Can we get closer?" Jack asked.   
  


"Sir, we're almost to the range limit for the gate. If we go too far, we'll lose contact."   
  


"Well, just get as close as you can and zoom in. At least we can get some idea of what's there. Any idea who built that, Daniel?"   
  


"I can't be positive, but offhand, I'd say the Ancients." 

"Bet that's where those Jaffa are taking that dinosaur."   
  


"More than likely, sir," Sam agreed as she followed the Jaffa with UAV. "I'm wondering if dinosaurs would even be compatible as hosts. I'd think they'd want to blend with something more intelligent." 

"Actually," Linda said, looking thoughtful, "the raptors are very intelligent. Somehow the Goa'uld might have figured that out. They may have been observing them." 

"Well, if it's smart, and nasty to boot, they'll take it," Jack quipped.   
  


"Sir, we're running out of time. We're going to have to redial the Gate."   
  


"Okay. Let's stop taping here. I want to show this to Teal'c and Hammond. 

What's the fuel situation with the UAV?"   
  


"Still three quarters full."   
  


"Good. Set it down near the Gate, where it'll be safe from the dinos. Linda, you and Daniel can continue the survey later after we assess this situation."   
  


Linda and Daniel both nodded. Linda was disappointed, but she knew that this situation took precedence.   
  


Jack ejected the tape and walked out of the Control Room, headed to talk to Teal'c and General Hammond.   
  


"Well," Linda remarked. "That certainly puts a twist on things."   
  


"Yeah," Daniel agreed, grimly, "a very nasty one."   
  


"For sure. Those critters are going to make some very smart and extremely nasty hosts if the Goa'uld succeed. I don't think I'd want anywhere near one of them. Raptors without Goa'uld parasites are menacing enough. Also, there's that alien we saw. We still haven't seen any more evidence of him or any of his kind. I wonder if he's connected with the Goa'uld in any way."   
  


"I don't know."   
  


"Well, maybe we can start working with the data we have."   
  


"Yeah."   
  


"See you guys later," Sam said as she monitored the UAV's return trip.   
  


"See you," they said in unison as they left the Control Room.   
  


********************   
  


An hour later, General Hammond convened a meeting with SG-1 in the Conference Room.   
  


"So, Colonel O'Neill, you've found a Goa'uld on P3D-664," he stated.   
  


"Yes, sir. We certainly have."   
  


Sam started playing the tape.   
  


It showed the two Jaffa carrying the ten-foot long Deinonychus through the forest. Then the UAV had progressed a little further and a sprawling building had come into view.   
  


"These dinosaurs had come close to the structure before the Jaffa incapacitated them," Teal'c commented.   
  


"Why?" Jack asked.   
  


"Because, as you know, O'Neill, the stun effect of the zatnickitel is limited. The Jaffa would only have a short time to contain these animals before they regained consciousness. Stunning them too far away would mean putting their own lives at risk. Apparently, as Linda Ramsey said earlier, they are aware of these dinosaurs' threatening nature. If these raptors are as deadly as she has said, then the Jaffa would be extremely unwise to endanger themselves any more than necessary.   
  


"Well, if this is so risky for them, why are they doing it?" O'Neill demanded.   
  


"Because Ahriman, Sokar, or both may have commanded it. Both their Jaffa are present on the planet. Or another Goa'uld could be attempting to deceive us. I cannot be certain."   
  


"Well, we know about Sokar, but who is this fine Ahriman fella?"   
  


"One of the most devious System Lords known."   
  


"Sokar is already enough of a threat," Hammond stated. "Is this Ahriman as much of a threat as he is?"   
  


"It is possible. Ahriman's calculating nature is well known. "   
  


"So what do we do?" Daniel asked.   
  


"Well, since protecting the earth is our priority and this Goa'uld is a potential threat, we'll have to stop the dinosaur surveys and take care of the more immediate problem. But I'm not certain how we should go about that. Sending people to the planet is extremely risky and, therefore, not an option," Hammond stated.   
  


"We're just going to allow this Goa'uld to make these raptors hosts?" Daniel inquired, very concerned.   
  


"I did not say that, Dr. Jackson, but whoever we send through the Gate would probably be killed by dangerous dinosaurs long they reach their goal. We can't protect our people from them. If you have any suggestions, I'm open to them."   
  


"Maybe we can find help," Daniel suggested.   
  


"Help? From whom?" Linda asked.   
  


"Perhaps from the Tok'ra."   
  


"Who are the Tok'ra?"   
  


"They are a group of Goa'ulds who rebelled against the System Lords, particularly Ra," Sam explained. "Their name literally means 'against Ra'. They carry symbiotes just like the Goa'uld, but they seek willing hosts, instead of enslaving them, and they allow their hosts to speak for themselves. It's a more truly symbiotic relationship than the Goa'uld have with their hosts. My dad was dying of cancer and became host to the Tok'ra, Selmak, whose host, Saroosh, was also dying. I was also host to Jolinar of Malkshur, for a brief time, but she died."   
  


Linda nodded.   
  


"What could the Tok'ra tell us?" Hammond asked.   
  


"Well, maybe they could help us find a way of controlling these raptor hosts," Daniel suggested.   
  


"You probably couldn't stop short of killing them, not if what you've told me about the Goa'uld is true." Linda commented. "Add to that the raptors' own intimidating nature and you'd likely have double trouble."   
  


"Perhaps we could find out if they know anything about Ahriman and his plans, and why he would want to use dinosaurs as hosts," Sam advised.   
  


"We could find out if this is the only time the Goa'uld have used animals for hosts or if they've done it before," Daniel added   
  


"You could also ask if they know anything about this planet that we don't," Hammond declared.   
  


"Also, sir," Linda said, "we might want to ask them if they know of aliens like the one we spotted in the first MALP survey,"   
  


"Okay. Major Carter, you and Dr. Jackson go call your father. See if the Tok'ra can tell us any of these things and possibly help us in dealing with this problem."   
  


"Yes, sir," Sam answered.   
  



End file.
